Quick disconnect anchor fitting for bowden cables



y 0, 1950 G. M. MOTIS 2,509,445

QUICK DISCONNECT ANCHOR FITTING FOR BOWDEN CABLES Filed Aug. 4, 1947 lli%\\\ l A r 70 Q/va Patented May 30, 1950 QUICK DISQON NECT AN CHOR FITTINGFOR BOWDEN CAjBIiES Gilbert, :Motis, Burbank G nt, assi no i N rthrop Ai c Inc H wt orne, can a corporation ,of California Application August l, 1947, Serial No. 765,993

The present invention :relates to anchor Ifi't-w tings lfor attaching :the flexible, conduitvori sheath of a Bowden cable toa supporting membenand is primarily adapted for :use in attaching .fbhe ends of a :Bowden cablesheathzto tworelatively movable parts of an: artificial limb.

In the case of upperiextremity prostheses, it is customary to transmit. -thetcontrol iforce for operating a hook from the shqulder harness down to theactuating lever ofathahookthrougha Bowe den cable, which isaflexible and canabebent at the elbow without adverse effect on the operation of the hook. One essential-considerationJin the use of Bowden cablesisthat the outer :flexible conduit be anchored to .each of the 'two relatively movable members with whichit is associated, so that themeifective length ofwthe conduit between thepoints 1 of anchorage remains fixed and constant, irrespective of thegangular relationship between the membersyor of tension in the inner wire. It is also desirable thatthe an chor fitting be free to swivel to acertain ex tent, so as toenablethe 'sBowden :cable to aocommodate itself in smooth .curves to I any angular relationshipvbetween the supporting members, or to any forces tending to bend the =cable at its point of attachment.

In addition to the abovegeneral considerations, there are other problems whichare more or less specific to the requirements of artificial limbs. Oneof these is that the anchor fittings should be quickly and easily removable *Iromthe supporting membersand without tools, without the necessity of removing rivets, Korunsoldering the ball fittings at the end of the, cable ".WiI'B 'SO that the amputee is enabled to replace worn or unserviceable cable controls. Another requirement is that'the anchor fittings be quickly and easily adjustable to any position alon athelength of the flexible conduit, to enable the amputee to fit the Bowden cable to his Specificneeds. This is an important feature, ,whenrit-is realized that no two prostheses are identical; andthaii correct fit and installation of the controls is essential to'prqp ope ationbf t e 'devieei h the o e o n mmind i cne Q -the primary objects of the present'inventionvto provide a new and improved anchor fitting-tomattachihg the flexible "conduit of a Bowden cable o the upp i ewe a m porti ns o wart ficial arm Another object of the xinven onisa o Pr v a qu ck-detachable anchor ifittm minimi n a base me er tha .ise ema ent aza taehedto th supporting arm structure. and atretaine that is secured-onrthe rfiexible conduit, said retainer having an elongated, laterally extending flan e which is adapted :to. be ;.inser;te.d throu h ,a sl t in the basevmemberandithen turned 9 deereesi so that :the flange is confined under the bas member andcis held thereby.

Anotl'ierobjectis toprovideia quick-detachable anchor fitting which is ,swiveled on :its support-,- ing member, sothat the flexible conduitls permitted to accommodate itself in smooth, curves to any angular position of the upper and lower arm members.

Another. obj ectis to -provide an anchor fitting which is compact and smoothly rounded onal of its-exposed surfaces, so as; to reduce i-BXCQSSZWB wear on theclothing.

Still a further object of .the invention is to providean anchor fitting; which is inexpensiv and simpl to manufacture.

The fore oing a d o her o iectszand advane tagesof the present inventicn will be ome ape parent to: those skilled; in the art, upon considered, tion .of the followin de ailed descripti n o the pref rred mbod ment the eef. Reference b in had tothe a wmpanymedrawinss i wh ch:

Figure -1; is a perspective -.view-of an. ar icial arm, showing :a Bowden cable control attached to the upper-and, lowerarm portions v anchor fittings embody ng the prin iples of the invene tion; a

.Fisure .2 is a nlar ed t p cplan view of the anchor fittinss;

Figures stil thithe enlarged ectiqna view taken e cnetheil h 3 13 in-Fieure 2;

iEisurev 4 is .awp rsneeti e ,vi w o t e .r te nem and v a Figure is a .ESQQPiQl' QI iv ewisimi a t Fi re 3, sh wing th mann r in wh ch i the r tainer i ins rted t mue m tsl ina be as member- ;in th :dmwinssfihe referenc i desisnates an art fic al comprisin an up er I arm section II and a lower arm section 1 2, both o which sreiereblr termed Q lam n h astic impr enated fab tliat h been moldedren sui able rmsand Qv ired- The 1419* Der t e lower sec ion l w e e sense-cte tesethe by tasu teb e bo join J3, and

2h ter m1:- Q e ewer arm ecit heels eemerisine s ar l5 aud-i evebl hpo a?- Themqw able heels 1. 6 is pi ote t J1 an i e eptes t be o ened an i q qsed wit :resp e tethestefien: hoo at so t a cbieete-m y hes e pe lb tweenvthem B oiectiew vvermr irq t eip vc M -ens1 f thez l mlel ho k 1 is as actua n lever tightly together, so that a considerable amount of tension is required to separate them apprecia bly. Because of this arrangement, the spring is virtually incompressible, yet at the same time flexible, and the conduit 24 thus provides a path of constant length to which the wire 22 is confined.

The conduit 24 is attached to both the upper 7 arm section II and the lower arm section I2 by means of quick-detachable, swiveled anchor fittings 25, which will now be described. Each of the fittings 25 comprises a base member 26 that is fixed to its respective arm section, and a retainer 21 that is secured on the conduit 24. The base member 26 is preferably in the form of a sheet metal stamping of corrosion resistant steel, and is formed with a raised, flat circular crown 30 having mounting flanges 3| at opposite sides thereof. The base member 26 is curved on its under side to fit against the arm section, and is secured to the latter by rivets 32 whichpass through holes 33 and 34 in the flanges 3| and arm section, respectively. Formed in the center of the crown 30 is an elongated slot 35 having parallel, straight sides and arcuate ends, the axis of the slot 35 preferably lying on a line drawn through the centers of the rivet holes 33.

The retainer 21 is a generally cylindrical member, preferably made of brass, having a transversely extending hole 36 formed therein which is tapped to provide threads 4|]. The pitch of the threads 40 is slightly greater than the pitch of the coils in the conduit 24, so that when the latter is threaded through the holes 36, the coils are spread slightly and the spring tension of the wire causes the coils to bind in the threads 4|]. This binding action produces an appreciable resistance to relative turning movement between the conduit 24 and the retainer 21, so that the conduit is prevented from working through the retainer, but is not sufiicient to prevent the retainer from being led onto the conduit with the fingers. Once the retainer has been screwed far enough along the conduit to permit grasping the end of the latter, the conduit can be stretched out slightly so that all of the coils are pulled apart to the same pitch as the threads 40, and the retainer can then be turned freely along the conduit to the desired location thereon. Releasing the tension on the conduit causes the coils to close up again, binding the threads 40 and locking the retainer in position.

The retainer 21 is undercut adjacent its lower end to form a square cut groove 43' which is somewhat smaller in diameter than the upper cylindrical body portion, leaving a downwardly facing shoulder 44. Projecting laterally from the bottom end of the retainer at right angles to the axis of the threaded hole 36 are flanges 45. The

flanges 45 are of the same width as the diameter of the groove 43, being slightly narrower and somewhat longer than the slot 35, so that they can be inserted downwardly through the slot when inserted into the latter at an angle, one end first, as shown in Figure 5. Being longer than the slot 35, the flanges 45 will not drop out if they should turn, in use, to a position parallel to the slots, although they can be removed easily by merely moving the retainer to one end of the slot, and then lifting the other flange end out, in the reverse to the procedure for insertion.

' When both of the flanges 45 have been inserted into the space between the crown 30 and the supporting arm sections, the retainer 21 is turned placing the flanges 45 at right angles to the slot 35, and the axis of the threaded hole fliiparallel to the axis of the slot. In this position, the crown 30 along the straight side margins of the slot 35 is loosely confined between the flanges 45 and the shoulder 44. The retainer 21 is thus free to swivel with respect to the base member and is securely held thereto.

The upper end of the wire 22 is attached to the usual shoulder harness, one strap of which is shown at 50 in Figure 1. Connection is made by a hanger 5|, through which the strap 50 is inserted, and the shank of the hanger is secured to the end of the wire 22 by means of a clamp 52.

Replacement Bowden cables are supplied as assemblies, with hanger 5| and ball fitting 2| attached to the wire 22, and with two retainers 25 screwed onto the conduit 24. When a Bowden cable control becomes unserviceable, it is removed by detaching the strap 50 from the hanger 5|, disconnecting the ball coupling 2| from the operating lever 20 of the hook, and removing the two retainers 21 from their respective base members 26, as described earlier. The retainers of the new cable assembly are then turned along the conduit 24 to the same positions as in the old cable, and inserted into the base members 26, after which the ball coupling 2| is connected to the'operating lever 20, and strap 50 is secured to the hanger 5|.

While I have shown and described above in considerable detail what I believe to be the preferred form of my invention, it will be understood that various changes may be made in the shape and arrangement of the several parts without departing from the broad scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An anchor fitting for attaching the flexible conduit of a Bowden cable to a supporting member, said fitting including a sheet metal base member fixed to said supporting member, said base member having a portion raised up from said supporting member, with an elongated slot formed therein, a retainer having a transversely extending hole provided therein to receive said conduit, a pair of oppositely extending flanges projecting from the bottom end of said retainer at right angles to said hole, said flanges being adaptedto be inserted through said slot and turned 90 degrees with respect thereto, said raised portion of said base member having an interior surface extending in arcuate paths substantially continuously'and uninterruptedly between opposite ends of said slot to provide for free and unimpeded relative rotary travel of said flanges thereon, said flanges being confined between said raised portion and said supporting member, whereby said retainer is secured to said base member, yet free to swivel.

2. An anchor fitting for attaching the flexible conduit of a Bowden cable to a supportin member, said fitting including a sheet metal base member fixed to said supporting member, said base member having a portion raised up from said supporting member, with an elongated slot formed therein, a retainer secured to said conduit and having a pair of oppositely extending flanges projecting from the bottom end thereof, said flanges being slightly narrower and somewhat longer than said slot, whereby they can only be inserted through the latter at an angle, one end first, said flanges being turned after insertion throughsaid slot so that they are confined between said raised portion and said supporting member, whereby said retainer is secured to said base member, yet free to swivel.

3. An anchor fitting for attaching the spirally wound flexible conduit of a Bowden cable to a supporting member, said fitting including a sheet metal base member formed with a raised, flat, circular crown portion having mounting flanges at opposite ends thereof for attachment to said supporting member, said crown portion having an elongated slot formed in the center thereof, a retainer having a transversely extending threaded hole provided therein, said spirally wound conduit being threaded into said hole, a pair of oppositely extending flanges projecting laterally from the bottom end of said retainer, said flanges being slightly narrower and somewhat longer than said slot, whereby they can only be inserted through the latter at an angle, one end first, said flanges being turned after insertion through said slot so that they are confined between said raised crown portion and said supporting member, whereby said retainer is secured to said base member, yet free to swivel.

4. An anchor fitting for attaching the spirally wound flexible conduit of a Bowden cable to a supporting member, said fitting including a sheet metal base member formed with a raised, flat, circular crown portion having mounting flanges at opposite ends thereof for attachment to said supporting member, said crown portion having an elongated slot formed in the center thereof and extending generally parallel to the course of said cable, a retainer having a cylindrical body with a transversely extending threaded hole pro- 6 vided therein, said spirally wound conduit being threaded into said hole, a pair of oppositely extending flanges projecting laterally from the bottom end of said retainer at right angles to said hole, said flanges being slightly narrower and somewhat longer than said slot, whereby they can only be inserted through the latter at and angle, one end first, said retainer having an annular groove of the same diameter as the width of said flanges formed therein directly above the flanges,

said flanges being turned 90 degrees to said slot,

after insertion through the latter so that they are confined between said raised crown and said supporting member, with said crown portion adjacent the side edges of said slot being disposed within said groove, whereby said retainer is secured to said base member, yet free to swivel.

5. An anchor fitting for attaching the spirally wound flexible conduit of a Bowden cable to a supporting member, said fitting including a base member having an elongated slot formed therein, a retainer having a transversely extending threaded hole provided therein, said spirally wound conduit being threaded into said hole, a pair of oppositely extending flanges projecting laterally from the bottom end of said retainer, said flanges being slightly narrower and somewhat longer than said slot, whereby they can only be inserted through the latter at an angle, one end first, said flanges being turned after insertion through said slot so that they are confined beneath said base member, whereby said retainer is secured to the base member, yet free to swivel.

GILBERT M. MOTIS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,637,047 Moore July 26, 1927 1,739,829 Fedderman Dec. 17, 1929 

